Layers of the Earth, Ozone Layer and

Spheres of the Earth

*

*

*Importance of the

Atmosphere:

*Earth’s atmosphere is

a thin layer of air that

forms a protective

covering around the

planet, without which

days would be

extremely hot and

nights extremely cold

*Makeup of the

Atmosphere:

*Mixture of gases,

solids, and liquids that

surround the planet

that extend from

Earth’s Surface to

outer space.

*Gases in atmosphere:

*Nitrogen (78%),

Oxygen (21%) and

other gases (Argon

(0.93%), Carbon

Dioxide (0.03%) and

more)

*Solids in atmosphere;

*Dust, salt, pollen

*Liquids in atmosphere:

*Water droplets and

other liquid droplets

* Lowest of Earth’s Atmospheric Layers: contains 99% Water vapor and 75% atmospheric gases

*Where you study, eat, sleep

* Rain, snow, and clouds occur in the troposphere which extends up to about 10 km

* Layer Directly above the

troposphere where the

Ozone layer is located(10 to

50 km above Earth’s

Surface)

*Ozone is made up of 3

Oxygen molecules

* More details on Ozone

later on…

*

*

*Mesosphere

*Located above stratosphere (50 to 85 km above the Earth)

* Shooting stars (witnessed a meteor in the mesosphere)

*Thermosphere

*Named for its high temperatures (85 to 500km above the Earth) * Meteor trails

*Exosphere

*Above 500 km from

Earth

* Space shuttles orbit

the Earth in exosphere

with short bursts from

rocket thrusters

* Beyond exosphere is

outer space

*

*

* Pressure is the force exerted in an area

* Air pressure is greater near Earth’s surface and decreases higher in the atmosphere

* In other words, Air pressure decreases with altitude

* People find it harder to breathe in high mountains because fewer air molecules exist there.

* Jets that fly in the stratosphere must maintain pressurized cabins so that people can breathe

*

*The sun is the source of most of the energy on Earth.

*Solar energy passes through the atmosphere before reaching Earth’s Surface

*Layers contain different gases that absorb solar energy differently so the temperatures amongst the layers vary

*Get Green Book, turn

to pages 95

*Text for this slide

Earth’s Atmosphere

*

* Within the Stratosphere (19 to 48

km above our heads)…

*

*

*Ozone is made up of

oxygen

*We cannot see it but

our life depends on it?

*Why? you may ask…

* Well it shields us from

the Sun’s Harmful

Rays (UV rays)

*Threats to our Ozone layer:

*CFC’s (Chlorofluorocarbons): chemical compounds used in some refrigerators, air conditioners, in the production of some foam packaging and aerosol sprays

* Causing the Ozone hole!!!

Ozone Layer

*

25 minutes

*

30 minutes

*

*

* The four main spheres of the Earth are:

* Atmosphere -The gaseous layer that surrounds the Earth. It receives heat and moisture from the surface and redistributes them, returning some heat and all of the moisture to the surface. It supplies vital elements needed to sustain life forms

* Hydrosphere - The liquid realm of the Earth is principally the mass of water in the world’s oceans. It also includes solid ice in mountain and continental glaciers. Water occurs as a gaseous vapor, liquid droplets, and solid ice crystals. In the lithosphere,water is found in the uppermost layers in soils and in ground water reservoirs.

* Lithosphere - This outermost solid layer of the Earth provides a platform for most life-forms. The solid bedrock bears a shallow layer of soil in which nutrient elements become available to organisms. The surface of the lithosphere is sculpted into landforms which provide varied habitats for plants, animals, and humans.

* Biosphere - Most of the biosphere is contained in the shallow surface zone called the life layer. It includes the surface of the lands and the upper 100 meters of the ocean. On land, the life layer is the zone of interactions among the biosphere, lithosphere, and atmosphere.

*

The Four Great Realms

Lithosphere - All processes associated with the solid earth

Hydrosphere - All processes associated with water

Atmosphere - All processes associated with the gases that envelope

the earth

Biosphere - All processes that involve living organisms

*

*Measuring Up book pages 11-18

*Periods 1 and 3, this is due 9/16/2011 (Friday)

*Periods 2 and 4, this is due 9/15/2011 (Thursday)

*SCIENCE FAIR TOPICS (Typed, through my

webpage or hardcopy)

*Periods 1, 2, 3 and 4, this is due 9/16/2011

(FRIDAY)

*GreenHouse Effect

And Global Warming

*

*The sun’s energy is not evenly absorbed by the

Earth’s land and water surface. Unequal solar

heating produces currents of air and water and

constitute the global atmospheric and oceanic

circulation system.

* Large scale fluctuations in the

atmosphere from hour-to-hour or day-to-day

Weather systems arise mainly due to atmospheric instabilities, the evolution of which is governed by non-linear chaotic dynamics.

This is why weather is not predictable beyond a week or two

Super Typhoon Lupit (26W) west of the

Philippine Islands (Nov-26-2003) as seen

by the NASA’s MODIS satellite sensor.

Quick introduction…

*

Climate = What you expect,

Weather = What you get.

• Climate is defined as

averaged weather, typically

defined in terms of mean

and other statistical

quantities (higher order

moments), that measure

variability over a period of

time and over a geographical

region (space).

*